Some tips to help you enjoy your recreation experience...

When camping or picnicking, please keep your site clean; free from trash and food. Otherwise animals and insects are attracted to your site.

Please practice Leave No Trace ethics... Bag your trash and take it home with you. Help us keep our forests clean and green by "Packing It Out!"

Feel free to have a campfire (except when and where campfires are prohibited by Forest Order), but always attend your fire. When you leave, put it out, cold out! Put lots of water on it (about 5 gallons), mix and stir dirt in, then do it again until you can put your bare hand on the coals and they are cool to the touch!

Where do recreation fees go and how are they used?

Keep motor vehicles on designated routes and areas. If you plan on camping, driving off-highway vehicles, hunting, or exploring the backcountry, get a free Motor Vehicle Use Map (MVUM) to know which roads are open to motor vehicle use. Know before you go.

Sharing the trail with horses

Here’s a great resource on sharing trails with horses, mountain bikers, and hikers: “What a Horse Sees!” – a short film illustrating safe ways of passing horse and rider on the trail. Trailmeister.com

With your help, we can protect our natural resources for future generations.

Thank you!

Recreation Map

Spotlights

The colorful collection of buttes, pinnacles, mesas and canyons surrounding Sedona is famous the world around for its red rock vistas. Over the years, this area has served as the setting of many western novels and movies and has been the subject of uncounted paintings, photographs and other works of art. The remains of ancient wetlands, these crimson cliffs have been carved by the forces of the desert into one of nature's most magnificent masterpieces.

No matter what you do in Red Rock Country, you're always sightseeing. Ways to get even closer to all this scenery include: hiking, horseback riding, taking a scenic drive, sliding down a natural waterslide, picnicking, camping, taking lots of photos and fishing in Oak Creek. The Red Rock District includes some 160,000 acres of magnificent splendor. Some areas require a pass to park, so be sure to check out the information about our Red Rock Pass Program.

The Mogollon Rim is a rugged escarpment that forms the southern limit of the Colorado Plateau. It extends across the entire forest and provides excellent views within Plateau Country and Desert Canyon Country as well. Dropping as much as 2,000 feet in some areas, the Rim provides some of the most far-reaching scenery in Arizona. Views stretch from its rocky precipice to Four Peaks of the Mazatzals northeast of Phoenix.

Needless to say, sightseeing is a favorite activity along the Rim, but this forest area also boasts a historic system of hiking and horseback trails, a couple of picturesque lakes for boating and fishing, and backcountry skiing for wilderness adventurers. The Mogollon Rim is home to Camp Colley, an outdoor adventure camp at Little Moqui, run by the City of Phoenix, Parks and Recreation.

The photo above (see larger view) was taken by Mark Hickcox, Civil Engineer Tech on the Mogollon Rim District, from the Hutch Mountain Lookout Tower in the summer of 2011. It is looking south-east toward Long Lake.

In October 2010, the Coconino National Forest announced the formal consolidation of the Peaks and Mormon Lake ranger districts into the Flagstaff Ranger District. The Flagstaff Ranger District now encompasses nearly 850,000 acres of National Forest lands around the Flagstaff area, from Mormon Lake and Anderson Mesa to north of the San Francisco Peaks.

At 12,643 feet, the San Francisco Peaks is not only the dominant feature of the forest area we call the Volcanic Highlands, it's also the highest mountain in Arizona. Three of the summits that ring this dormant volcano's now quiet inner caldera are higher than any other mountain in the state.

This mountain is sacred to the native peoples that live in the area and its soaring profile set against a blue Arizona sky serves as a source of awe to contemporary residents and visitors. Views from the summit of the San Francisco Peaks stretch to the Grand Canyon's North Rim over eighty miles away.

Hiking, sightseeing, wildlife watching and skiing are the predominant recreation activities enjoyed in this land of mountains, forests and lava flows.

Flagstaff Ranger District, extends from north of the Peaks to the south. This rolling highland is a land of ponderosa pine forests and pinyon/juniper woodlands clustered around broad prairies and small lakes. Arizona's largest natural lake, Mormon Lake, is located here. The area is also known for its plentiful wildlife. Large herds of elk roam the forests and edgelands. Bald eagles and ospreys live and hunt around the lakes. Pronghorn antelope graze the prairies.

Principal recreation activities among the lakes and prairies are boating, fishing, camping, and wildlife watching. The area also boasts some excellent cross-country skiing in good snow years.